That first Pentecost described in the Acts of the
Apostles is not quite so abandoned as the Pentecostal churches would have it.
The writer of Acts is almost at a loss of words to describe the event, relying
on images of tongues of fire and languages from every corner of the known
world. Yet it’s also clear that this was not an incoherent frenzy; the hearers
understood what the disciples said. The preaching about God’s deeds of power moved
the listeners to believe in the good news of Jesus Christ.
Remarkably, Peter’s preaching connected that good news to
all of creation. Peter quoted the prophet Joel, an unusual source. The book of Joel
begins with a detailed account of a devastating locust plague (using an
astonishing number of Hebrew words for various kinds of locusts). In the section
quoted by Peter, however, Joel has extended that local disaster to cosmic significance,
to the final judgment of God. It is from Joel’s vision of the last days that
Peter draws, a time when God will pour the Spirit upon everyone, sons and
daughters, old and young. Not only humans, but all creation will be a witness in
those days, heaven above and earth below, with fire and smoke and eclipses of
sun and moon. (The last especially resonates in a week when there was a “ring
of fire” eclipse of the sun.)
The Apostle Paul picks up on this witness of the natural
world. Paul knows that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains
until now. What struggles to be born? The final, total redemption of the world,
the renewal of all that is. The first fruit of that redemption is the
resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is the hope God has given to us, the hope that
one day we, too, will experience new life.
In the meantime we are here, and here is not always a
good place to be. I am especially mindful of that right now, with the recent
deaths of four young people on the Mississippi River. It was just last Sunday,
while we were in church, that they were finally pulled out of the water. Our
hearts and our prayers go out to their families and friends.
At such a time we hear the words of Paul speaking to the
depths of our groaning, the groaning of all creation. Paul says that the Spirit
helps us in our weakness, interceding with sighs too deep for words. Jesus
calls that Spirit the Advocate, the Comforter, the very Spirit coming forth
from the depth of God to speak to our depth, connecting creation to Creator.
That is the promise given to us by Jesus Christ. That is our hope.
And that is why Pentecost is not a threat. The tongues
resting on the disciples are only the outward and visible signs of an inward
and invisible grace, a grace that comes to all of us through Jesus Christ in
the power of the Holy Spirit. That grace, that Spirit, is our hope, the hope in
which we are saved. Let us wait for that hope with trust, with patience, with
joy.
[The Day of Pentecost: Acts 2:1-21; Romans 8:22-27; John
15:26-27, 16:4b-15.]
2 comments:
I like to think of Pentecost fire as a cleansing. When there is a forest fire, everything dies, except for the seed in the ground. Then, in the midst of fire's destruction, the seed sprouts, and pretty soon there is new life everywhere.
That's like it was with the church on Pentecost. Among the destruction of the Christ, and his absence after the acension, we have the new life of the church.
I like the forest fire image. The seeds of the church were planted first in ancient Judaism, bearing fruit in the coming of Jesus. The seeds that Jesus planted were then able to sprout at Pentecost. If one considers that in fire-adapted ecosystems, seed germination is actually enhanced by heat, the metaphor works even better. Thanks for your comment!
Post a Comment